amcos-acknowledgment-protocol

name	amcos-acknowledgment-protocol
description	Use when requesting or processing agent acknowledgments before proceeding with operations. Trigger with acknowledgment requests or ACK timeout handling. Loaded by ai-maestro-chief-of-staff-main-agent
user-invocable	false
license	Apache-2.0
compatibility	Requires access to AI Maestro messaging system. Requires AI Maestro installed.
metadata	{"author":"Emasoft","version":"1.0.0"}
context	fork
agent	ai-maestro-chief-of-staff-main-agent

Acknowledgment Protocol

Overview

Ensures agents confirm readiness before disruptive operations via ACK requests, timeout management, reminders, and timeout handling.

Prerequisites

• AI Maestro running with AMP protocol
• AMP initialized: amp-init.sh --auto
• Target agents registered and reachable
• Pre-operation notification already sent (ACK follows pre-op)

Instructions

PROCEDURE 3: Acknowledgment Protocol

When to use: When agent confirmation is needed before proceeding, or when coordinating multi-agent operations.

Workflow:

1. Send ACK request - Use amp-send.sh to ask agent to reply "ok"
2. Start timeout timer - Use standardized timeout from policy table below
3. Send reminders - At defined intervals (e.g., 15s, 30s, 45s for pre-op ACK)
4. Process response - Handle "ok" or other responses
5. Proceed or timeout - Continue if ACK received, or follow timeout behavior

Copy this checklist and track your progress:

• Sent ACK request and started timeout timer per policy table
• Sent reminders at defined intervals if no response received
• Processed response (or timeout) and proceeded accordingly

See op-acknowledgment-protocol in Resources for full procedure details and examples.

Standardized ACK Timeout Policy

CRITICAL: All AMCOS components MUST use these values:

ACK Type	Timeout	Reminders	Use Case
Pre-operation ACK	60s	15s, 30s, 45s	Before disruptive ops
Approval request	2 min	60s, 90s	Manager approval
Emergency handoff	30s	10s, 20s	Time-critical emergencies
Health check	30s	None	Verifying agent alive

Timeout behavior: Pre-op ACK: proceed after final notice. Approval: proceed if autonomous, else abort. Emergency: proceed immediately.

Output

Action	Output
ACK request sent	Delivered, timeout timer started
ACK received	Agent confirmed, operation may proceed
Timeout reached	Final notice sent, logged, fallback taken

Error Handling

Issue	Resolution
ACK timeout	Send final notice, log, proceed per policy
Reminder not delivered	Health check agent. If offline, proceed per timeout
Partial ACK (multi-agent)	Track per-agent. Proceed when all respond or all timeout

Examples

# Send ACK request before disruptive operation
amp-send.sh code-impl-auth "ACK: hibernate in 60s" high \
  '{"type":"acknowledgment-request","timeout":60}'

Expected: agent replies "ok" within 60s; if no reply after reminders at 15s/30s/45s, proceed with final notice.

Checklist

Copy this checklist and track your progress:

• Send ACK request via agent-messaging with correct timeout
• Send reminders at defined intervals if no response
• Process response or handle timeout per policy

Resources

• op-acknowledgment-protocol — Full ACK procedure, timeout policy, examples
  • When to Apply
  • Prerequisites
  • Standardized ACK Timeout Policy
  • Procedure
    • Step 1: Send Acknowledgment Request
    • Step 2: Start Timeout Timer
    • Step 3: Send Reminders
    • Step 4: Process Response
    • Step 5: Proceed or Handle Timeout
  • Checklist
  • Examples
    • Example 1: Pre-Operation ACK Flow
    • Example 2: Approval Request ACK
    • Example 3: Emergency Handoff ACK
  • Error Handling
  • Related Operations